While Nicole and I have already created the technical plan and storyboard for our rom-com opening, we needed to find people to actually portray Audrey and Mattias. We realized that having the right actors is crucial because no matter how well we plan our shots or how beautiful our lighting looks, if the actors can't sell the chemistry and rivalry between these characters, the whole opening falls apart. For a rom-com especially, casting is everything as the audience needs to believe in the connection between the leads from the very first moment they meet.
Finding Our Actors
As Nicole and I began planning Competitive, Much?, we realized that casting the right actors for Audrey and Mattias is essential to bringing our story to life. The success of our project depends on performers who can capture the comedic timing, emotional tension, and chemistry that the rivalry-turned-romance requires. Since Nicole and I are both in theater, we decided to ask friends who we already know and trust to fill these roles. We are confident in their acting ability, which makes the process smoother and ensures that the characters will feel authentic on screen.
Audrey Daniels - Nadia Nicolas
Character Profile:
- Determined and goal-oriented
- Feisty and competitive
- Intelligent and focused
- Stubborn at times but quick-thinking
- Witty with humorous reactions during conflicts
- Emotionally expressive
Character Background: Audrey is a 17-year-old Venezuelan senior in high school who is competitive, driven, and has been fighting for the achievement award since freshman year. Her birthday is coming up in a few days, and she's preparing by staying healthy and working out. Originally, Nicole and I considered making Audrey a track athlete, which would have tied her competitiveness to sports. However, we decided against that idea because we didn't want the movie to feel too sporty, especially since Mattias already plays hockey. Instead, Audrey is now a girl who focuses on her academics and is fiercely competitive over the Achievement Award. This change allows her rivalry with Mattias to center on individual accomplishments rather than sports.
Audrey is the type of person who doesn't back down from challenges and isn't afraid to speak her mind, which is why when Mattias accidentally hits her with his hockey ball during her workout, she immediately confronts him instead of just letting it go.
Why Nadia is Perfect: Nadia Nicolas is a perfect choice for Audrey because of her acting experience and strong performance skills. She is sixteen years old, 5 feet 1 inch tall, and has two years of acting experience in musical theatre. We knew that Nadia had the energy and presence that Audrey needs. She's naturally expressive, which makes her believable as someone who is fiercely competitive and won't back down from confrontation.
Nadia is very nice and outgoing, which makes her easy to work with, and she can pull off a highly expressive character like Audrey. She's focused, skilled at interpreting scripts, and uses her face and body effectively to portray emotion. Nadia understood that Audrey isn't just angry for the sake of being angry she's frustrated because Mattias represents everything she's been competing against for years, and this random collision in the park is just another example of him getting in her way.
Being Venezuelan herself, Nadia also brings authentic cultural representation to the role. While we're not making Audrey's heritage the central focus of her character, it's important to us that the representation feels genuine. Nadia can provide her own costume for the workout scene, which makes preparation easier and allows her to choose athletic wear she's comfortable in.
Mattias Salomon - Evan Ventura
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Character Profile:
- Confident and playful
- Slightly mischievous
- Competitive but charming
- Thoughtful beneath his confident exterior
- Emotionally expressive
- Teasing with subtle hints of romantic interest
Character Background: Mattias is also a 17-year-old Venezuelan senior, and he plays on the hockey team. Like Audrey, he's been competing for the achievement award since freshman year, making them rivals who know of each other but have never had a proper conversation. He's athletic, focused, and probably used to being one of the top students in his classes. When he accidentally hits Audrey with his hockey ball during a casual practice session in the park, he's initially apologetic but that changes quickly when she starts yelling at him and he realizes who she is.
Why Evan is Perfect: Evan Ventura is an excellent choice for Mattias thanks to his two and a half years of acting experience and background in band and theatre. He is fifteen years old, 5 feet 9 inches tall, with short, wavy black hair and white skin. Nicole and I chose Evan because even though he's naturally shy in real life, he can really get into character and has experience in a variety of roles, which allows him to portray Mattias' playful, confident, and slightly mischievous personality convincingly.
What impressed us most about Evan is his great line memorization and strong work ethic. He uses facial expressions and emotions effectively to maintain the mood of a scene, which is crucial for rom-coms where so much of the comedy and chemistry comes from reactions and timing. His acting skills and emotional range make him perfect to show Mattias' competitiveness while hinting at the romantic tension with Audrey. We know from working with Evan in theater that he takes direction well and is willing to experiment with different approaches to a scene.
Being Venezuelan like Nadia is important for maintaining authentic representation, and Evan's experience with physical comedy from theater productions will help him execute the hockey ball fight sequence convincingly.
On Screen Chemistry
The dynamic between Nadia as Audrey and Evan as Mattias is exciting because their differences and personalities create natural chemistry. The height difference, with Audrey being smaller at 5 feet 1 inch and Mattias taller at 5 feet 9 inches, adds visual contrast that emphasizes the playful rivalry and eventual romantic tension between them. Audrey's determination and intensity paired with Mattias' confidence and teasing energy will create a fun and believable rivals-to-lovers dynamic.
Nicole and I are confident that Nadia and Evan's theatrical experience will translate well to film. Both actors understand timing, which is crucial for the comedic beats in our opening, and both are comfortable with physical comedy, which we'll need for the hockey ball fight sequence. Since we know them from theater, we've already seen them perform together in group scenes, and we know they can take direction and adjust their performances based on feedback.
Working With Our Cast
Since we've finalized our casting, our next steps are crucial for making sure Nadia and Evan fully understand their characters and the vision for this opening. Nicole and I are planning to have a script read-through where we'll go over each scene in detail, discussing the subtext behind the dialogue and the emotional arc of the opening. We want Nadia and Evan to understand that even though Audrey and Mattias are arguing, there's an underlying attraction building from the moment they recognize each other.
We're also going to rehearse the physical comedy extensively. The sequence where they fight over the hockey ball needs to look natural and spontaneous, not choreographed or awkward. We'll practice the pushing and shoving, figure out the timing of when the ball flies toward the camera, and rehearse the moment when they fall into each other's arms. This is the most important beat in the entire opening because it's when the audience sees the shift from enemies to potential romance, so we need to get it right.
We're also going to go over expectations for the set and filming day. Since we're shooting during late afternoon on a sunny day for the best natural lighting, we'll have a specific time window to capture everything, which means everyone needs to be prepared and focused. We'll walk through the storyboard with them so they know exactly what shots we're planning and where they need to be positioned for each one.
Additionally, we want to discuss costume choices with both actors. For Audrey, we're thinking athletic wear that looks realistic for someone on a workout, like maybe running shorts or leggings, a fitted tank top or t-shirt, running shoes, and possibly a fitness tracker or phone armband. For Mattias, he'll be carrying his hockey equipment and probably wearing athletic clothes like joggers and a team hoodie or athletic shirt. We want to make sure both actors are comfortable in their costumes and that the clothes fit the characters' personalities.
Challenges and Considerations
One challenge we're aware of is making sure both actors understand the tone we're going for. This opening is comedic and playful, not genuinely hostile. The argument needs to feel like banter rather than a real fight, which requires a specific type of delivery. We'll work with them on finding that balance between being competitive and confrontational while still keeping it light and entertaining.
We're also thinking about how to direct the final moment when they fall into each other's arms after the ball flies away. This needs to feel surprising and genuine, not forced or overly romantic. We'll experiment with different ways they can land in that position so it looks natural and unplanned rather than staged. The height difference between Nadia and Evan will actually help with this because when they stumble together, it'll be natural for Evan to catch Nadia since he's taller.
Another consideration is the physical safety during the hockey ball sequence. We need to make sure that when Mattias "accidentally" hits Audrey with the ball, it's choreographed safely so Nadia doesn't actually get hurt. We'll probably use a soft ball or practice the timing extensively so the ball misses her by just enough to look convincing on camera without any risk of injury.
Reflection
Now that we have our cast finalized, Nicole and I feel much more confident about bringing this story to life. Having actors who understand the characters and can deliver the emotional beats we need makes everything else like the cinematography, the color grading, the sound design feel more achievable because we know the foundation is solid.
What excites us most is that both Nadia and Evan are enthusiastic about the project and have already started thinking about their characters. We're looking forward to collaborating with them and seeing how they interpret Audrey and Mattias in ways that might surprise us.
For our next steps, we need to schedule our first rehearsal with Nadia and Evan so we can start working on the chemistry and blocking out the physical comedy. We also want to take reference photos of both actors in their costumes once we have everything finalized. This will help us visualize the final look and also give us material to use when presenting this project. Overall, we're really happy with the casting choices and excited to see these characters come to life through Nadia and Evan's performances.
https://www.studentfilmmakers.com/casting-actors-for-student-films/
https://nofilmschool.com/casting-tips-independent-film
https://www.premiumbeat.com/blog/how-to-cast-actors-for-your-film/
https://www.canva.com/design/DAHBcLR4dV0/alr2EFej6Y91LyUsd9KdKQ/view?utm_content=DAHBcLR4dV0&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link2&utm_source=uniquelinks&utlId=h0b0eca4563
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